Med School Interview Tips

For year 13s hoping to study medicine, or students on a gap year, you may find that now is a critical and stressful time. All of you will have overcome the UCAT, submitted applications to UCAS, and now, it may seem tempting to take a break. However, you must persevere in the marathon that is applying to medicine. Interviews can take place any time from now until March/April, but it’s important that you start interview preparation from now, and not when you receive an interview offer. 

Interview preparation is an accumulative process that cannot be crammed in the night before. The purpose of an interview is to illustrate to the university who you are outside of academics, and to show that you have the values and ethics of a medical student, and future doctor. 

Part of being a medical student is all about learning, there will always be something new to learn about, and this is something worth starting to get accustomed to. Avoid thinking about interview preparation as a chore and instead view it as an opportunity to explore complex topics and cases, and try to formulate your own unique thinking points about each topic. 

There are a multitude of resources available online, for free, to guide you through this, and to inform you on what questions interviewers may ask. It is of utmost importance that you try practicing with someone else. It can feel deceptively easy to answer questions by yourself. However, it is not the same as talking with an interviewer that you do not know. You must be able to communicate your ideas in a professional manner and to be aware of your body language- make sure you are maintaining eye contact with the person in front of you. These simple aspects of communication may not have been something you were consciously aware of until now, so you will want to make sure that you are able to express yourself proficiently. 

Interviews may seem daunting, but they are merely another hurdle that you will jump over- not simply through talent or luck, but through perseverance and consistency. Be interested in the cases you’re learning about, seek constructive criticism from others (as opposed to just praise) to improve your answers, and most importantly, ensure that who you are as a person shines through. 

Be sure to check whether the universities you have applied to do panel or MMI interviews and prepare accordingly. Your biggest enemy in interviews is your own negative thoughts, so lock those away, and focus on moving forward. 

 Inshallah all will be well. 

 -Amal Al-Ashwal.